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New defeat to legalize equal marriage in Northern Ireland

A further defeat occurred in Northern Ireland in the battle to get legalization of equal marriage. Irish High Court rejected two cases that challenged the prohibition of marriage for same-sex couples.

The judge dismissed these cases because he felt that it was not for the courts to rule on laws but for the assembly.

"It is not at all difficult to understand how gay men and lesbians who have suffered discrimination, rejection and exclusion feel so strongly about the maintenance in Northern Ireland of the barrier to same-sex marriage," High Court Justice John O’Hara said in announcing his verdict.

"The judgment which I have to reach is not based on social policy but on the law." Any changes to the law must be made by the Northern Ireland Assembly, the nation’s national legislative body"

The problem is that the government is opposed to the legalization of marriage equality. The five previous attempts have been blocked despite the approval of the Assembly because the government has vetoed the bills.

Conservative leader Helen Foster recently said that she would continue to fight to prevent marriage equality.